Questions have been asked about why it took police two hours to attempt a rescue of two children inside a four-wheel drive vehicle which lay upside down in a settling pond.
An inquest is being held into the death of Tayne Luca Bowes, 9, who drowned at a gold mine near Hokitika on the West Coast in August 2012.
While the children's father managed to escape after accidentally driving into the settling pond, he wasn't able to get his daughter or son out of the vehicle which was in two metres of water.
His sister, Keira Bowes, managed to survive, thanks to an air pocket in the partially submerged car, and was pulled to safety after spending about 90 minutes in the water.
On Tuesday the children's grandfather, Murray Bowes, asked why it took so long for police to enter the water, saying the operation was treated as a body recovery rather than a rescue.
Outside court, Senior Sergeant Allyson Ealam, who pulled then eight-year-old Keira from the Toyota Hilux, said no one expected that the children would still be alive, and it was a miracle the girl survived.
Ms Ealam said it was bittersweet to be able to save the girl, but not her brother.
